Exclusive Rice from the Land like no other
Words by bojoon.com

Sri Lanka is a land waiting to be rediscovered, exclaims Dr. Sumith Abeysiriwardena –senior consultant researcher to CIC Agri Businesses (CIC). Since the 300-odd year European occupation, Sri Lankan culture is shrouded in mystery. A good point of unraveling this mystery is our rice*, he continues.
 
Since time immemorial our lives have been dominated by the cycle of rice cultivation. Evidence suggests that rice has been cultivating for at least 300 years before Vijaya’s unceremonious entry to Sri Lanka.  According to Dr. Abeysiriwardena our New Year, celebrated in April and our very traditional wedding ceremony – the poruwa ceremony make classic examples.

Expanding, he explains that though the poruwa ceremony is considered an essentially a Buddhist ceremony, its origins actually predates the introduction of Buddhism to Sri Lanka. It is more a ritual to the Sun and the Moon for fertility in marriage and every act in the poruwa a symbol of prosperity and good omen than a religious blessing. We were after all Sun worshippers before Buddhism.

Though generally considered sacrilegious to trample rice, for rice as our staple is equal to godliness, a poruwa ritual dictates stepping on rice. This is in emulation of the kamatha – the clearing on the paddy-fields, where paddy is trampled by buffalo to separate the grains. Thus, as the source where months of hard toil are reaped, kamatha is considered sacred. Stepping on rice in the poruwa ceremony symbolizes this prosperity of the kamatha.

As Sri Lanka is under the equator belt soil quickly gets exhausted by the hot tropical sun. Yet, unlike most rice growing countries in the region we have not concentrated our rice cultivation only along the river banks points Dr. Abeysiriwardena. Instead, we have made good use of our abundant rainfalls and have created a hydraulic system unique to Sri Lanka. This investment has enabled us to grow our rice in comparatively parched places like Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa and even cultivate two seasons.

By March, stores are filled with the harvest and farmer relaxes till around September. Auspicious events generally do not take place in the agricultural year’s last month, March. April is dedicated to the worship of the Sun, Moon and the fertility goddess, Sat Pattini, making May and June the months for auspicious events like weddings.

village gathers in the making of a wedding, especially the numerous rice-based sweetmeats.

With over 300 varieties of traditional rice, we certainly had a rice right for each food! However, during colonization coffee and then tea was given the prominence and the rice industry suffered losing most of these traditional varieties. Even the rice that survived was not recognized for its quality, claims Dr. Abeysiriwardena.

A good example would be our ‘suduru samba’, which as the name implies are in the shape of sweet cumin and could easily be considered one of the finest grains. Unfortunately, the occupiers did not realize that there was a vast variety of rice and quickly assumed the long, slender grain such as basmati found in Northern India as the top of the range quality and this assumption stuck. The petite, rounder suduru samba was thus cast away as ordinary, though it is as a finer grain as basmati in texture and aroma.

CIC been a dynamic player in the Sri Lankan agricultural industry launched a new project to propel rice from a mere staple to exotic; revive lost varieties while creating new and initiate untapped markets. In their short span, they have revived 3 varieties that were lost to the world in general with resounding success. The ‘kaluheenati’ explains Dr. Abeysiriwardena though rough on the palette is very nutritious as it is not only high in fiber, but also in iron. ‘Madathawalu’ is also a red grain, but softer than ‘kaluheenati’ and perhaps gentler on the taste buds. ‘Suwendel’ is a small, white grain and as the name notes has a wonderful aroma.

However, their greater success story lies in the new varieties that they have created. Not only have they successfully cultivated for the first time in Sri Lanka white basmati, but also red basmati! No where else in the world has red basmati been grown or sold, thus currently making red basmati exclusive to Sri Lanka!

Months of May, June, July would be filled with weddings. As much as these are happy occasions, are also dreaded by those suffering or with potential for diabetes, obesity, pressure and coronary diseases. However, now there is a grain in the form of red basmati, that is not only top of the range, but also very healthy and that is truly worth celebrating!

* To know more about rice, and our rice-based dishes visit our food and drink file in www.bojoon.com – the web-portal for the food and drink of Sri Lanka.

Visit www.bojoon.com for free recipes of popular Sri Lankan curries or join our culinary tours and cooking classes.